Vacuum cleaner



April 3, 1945. FQR'SBERG v $372,944 VACUUM CLEANER Filed April 24, 1942 s Sheets-Sheet 1 159294 2 20 m 3 26 z l n} .3? 38 'i April 1945- A. A. FORSBERG 2,372,944

VACUUM CLEANER Filed A ri; 24, 1942 5 Sheets-Shah: 2

April 3, 1945. A. A. FORSBERG VACUUM CLEANER Filed April 24, 1942 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 are connected to the cover unit and fllter are, as appears from the draw- Patented Apr. 3, 1945 VACUUM CLEANER Axel Albert Forsberg, Stockholm, Sweden, assignor to Electrolux Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application April 24, 1942, Serial No. 440,293

- In Sweden May 5, 1941 Claims.

My present invention relates to vacuum cleaners, and has for its object to improve the capacity of apparatus of this kind and at the same time simplify their operation.

The accompanying drawings show an embodiment of the invention, and in connection with the following description of said embodiment the characteristics of the invention will be set forth.

Fig. l is a vertical longitudinal section of a vacuum cleaner constructed in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the dust container 05 the apparatus with its cover removed.

Fig. 3 is a side view of said cover placed on supporting members arranged for this purpose.

Figs. 4-6 and 7 show details and a wiring diagram, respectively 01' the starting device of the vacuum cleaner motor.

Figs. 8 and 9 show details of the supporting means of the motor fan unit of the apparatus, Fig. 8 being a section along the line 8-8 of Fig. 9.

Figs. 10-14 show different details of the conon encloses spaces or chambers communicating with each other. One of these chambers is a suction chamber I8 bounded by the outer wall IQ of the cover, an under wall connected to said outer wall, the filter l5, a cylindrical member 23 connected to or arranged in an opening in the under wall 20, a casing immediately surrounding the motor fan unit H within the member 23 and consisting of hoods 28, 23 and 30 suitably removably connected to each other, as well as a partition 2| extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of the vacuum cleaner.

-'I'he other chamber is a pressure chamber 22 bounded by the hoods 28, 29' and 30, the partition 2| and the outer wall IQ of the cover. Lo-

cated in the pressure chamber 22,-is the motor fan unit including a motor 24 and two. fans arranged on the shaft of the motor. The under necting members between. the cover of the apparatus and the dust container, Fig. 13 being taken on the line |3|3 of Fig. 12.

Figs. 15 and 16 showdetails of a cleaning device for the dust filter, Fig. 16 being a section along theline |6|6of .15, and

Figs. 17 and 18 show details of said filter itself, Fig. 17 being a section along the line ll -ll of Fig. 18.

As appears from Figs. 1-3, the vacuum cleaner consists of a suitably elongated lower part III formed as a dust container, and an upper part II of similar shape preferably serving as a cover for the dust container. container ID are a number of supporting wheels I2 and i3 for the apparatus, of which two wheels l2 are arranged on horizontal axles rigidly connected to the dust container and suitably located at the rear end of the container. At the front end of the container 9. wheel I3 is provided with a caster mounting. The motor fan unit ll of the apparatus as well as dust filters l5 formed in known manner with concentric, circular folds The motor fan ings, located side by side. Moreover, the cover is provided with a carrying handle |6 for the apparatus and with an electric plug and switch device H. The cover thus forms together with the filter, motor fan unit and other electric parts,

a unitcapable of being lifted off'from the dust container ll.

The cover II with the members mounted therewall 20 is formed with one or, if desired, two

openings for receiving the filter and the member 23, if the latter is not made integrally with said under wall. The inlet of the member 23 *is formed by one or more openings 26. The suction and pressure chambers i8 and 22, respectively, communicate with each other by means of an opening 30' made in the hood 30 and serving as an inlet opening for the fans. The partition 2| is suitably tightly connected to the casing surrounding the unit.

The motor 24 is resiliently mounted in rubber rings 21 arranged at its upper and lower nds. Of the hoods 23, 29 and 30 surrounding the unit, the latter two serve as fan hoods. The hoods 23, 29 and 30 have less diameter than the member 23, an annular channel 3| which conducts the air from the openings 26 to the inlet 30' of the fans being thus formed. Inserted between the upper end portion of the hood 28 and parts rigidly connected to the cover H, such as the partition 2|, is a rubber ring 32. A rubber ring-33 is also'located between the outer portion of the hood 30. in which is formed the inlet opening 30', and the bottom part of the member 23. The rings 32 and 33 thus form a further resilient support for the unit. The member 23 extends somewhat deeper into the dust container than the hoods 2|, 2! and 30, and fulfils a double task, namely to carry the unit I4, on one hand, and, on the other hand,

to form a guide for the air current which, afteragainst which the hood 3. bears. Altemateguide bars are lengthened for improving the guiding of the air. If desired, they may, for this purpose, be bent or tilted.

The member 23 may be provided at its lower outer surface with one or more projections 35 of rubber or other suitable material, said projections serving as feet when the cover II is removed from the dust container l0. To the other end portion of the cover, there may be connected one or more legs 35 adapted to cooperate with the feet 35 for supporting the cover in an upright position when outside the dust container, as when the latter is to be emptied.

' The filter I5 is provided with a hand-operated cleaning or shaking device of a kind known per se and shown, for instance, in Patent No. 1,946,665 issued February 13, 1938, to Tom C. Bieth. This device is adapted to be actuated by a push-button 31. In order that during the cleaning of the filter, when the motor is in operation,

substantially the same pressure should obtain on both sides of the filter, the cover H is provided, above the filter, with a valve device 38 through which air may flow through the space l8 directly to the fans, that is without passing through under wall around the opening therein, and the center of the filter is secured to center of frame When the hood 38 is opened and the button 3'! depressed, the part 45 is lowered and hence slack is provided in the folds of the filter. If the button is then released, the spring 94 moves the part 45 quickly upwardly, thus snapping the filter and dislodging dirt from the under side thereof. Even if the motor is running, no air flows through the filter inasmuch as hood 39 is open, and therefore the dislodged dirt settles in the dust container formed by the casing l0.

To prevent the wheels I! and I3 from damaging furniture or the like, when the apparatus is moved, they are arranged in recesses or pockets 45 and 48 in the walls of the dust container. To prevent as far as possible the dust from being whirled up in the container and to thus facilitate its precipitation in said container, a number of transverse, tilted walls 50 are provided, which the filters. The valve consists of a hood 39 pivotally connected to the outer wall of the cover,-

and openings 40 cooperating with said hood and made in part l9 (Figs. 15 and 16) The hood embraces the upper part of the knob 31, the operator being thus forced to open the hood, when the filter is to be shaken. This will cause air to fiow directly into the fans. The edge of the hood bearing against the cover is provided with a packing strip 4|, for example, of rubber. When the apparatus is in operation, the seal provided by this packing is improved by theatmospheric pressure. The hood is formed with a handle 42 for facilitating the opening thereof. The hinge or hinges by means of which the hood is connected ,to the cover may suitably be yieldable or consist of a double link or the like so as to permit.

the edge of the hood bearing against the cover to be adjusted into the proper position relatively to the cover and thus automatically bear against said cover and form a sealing joint against it, independent of variations, if any, in the dimensions of the parts.

To prevent the penetration of dust through the openings formed in the fastening devices at the upper points 43 of the folds of the filter, segments 44 of resilient material are-interposed between said filter points and the cross-shaped movable part 45 of the shaking device. The points of the folds are kept in place against the segments 44 by means of metal wires 46 which engage the supporting rings 41 underneath said folds and pass through the resilient segments 44, and are fixed to the movable part 45 by being bent thereover, as is clearly shown in Figs. 1'7 and 18.

The shank 90 of button 31 carries a flanged member 9| which, as appears more clearly in Fig. 15, is riveted or otherwise suitably secured to the movable part 45. The lower end of shank 90 is reciprocable within a cylindrical guide 92 which is supported on a frame 93. A coil spring 54 is compressed between flanged member 9| and the frame 93 and tends to hold the flanged member, push-button 31 and movable part 45 in their uppermost positions. The frame 93 passes through suitable apertures in the part 45 and is secured to the outer wall IQ of cover II. This frame carries a circular hoop 95 which serves to support the lower intermediate fold of filter l5.

The fouter edge of the filter is secured to the extend along the bottom of the container and.

between its outer walls. These transverse walls also increase the strength of the container. To facilitate the emptying of the container l0, two tubular handles 5| and 52 are arranged at its ends, around the axes of which handles the container may be rotated, when being emptied. One of these handles, namely 5|, which is formed with a continuous channel, serves as coupling means for the suction hose of the apparatus, while the other, 52, may be closed. Each handle is formed with a milled collar 53 so as to facilitate said ro- -tation, when the container is being emptied,

preferably against that part of it which is provided with a smaller diameter than the outer part. The ends of the two legs of the clip 54 which are formed as eyes 56 are journalled on the pins 51 in attachments 58 connected to the cover l|. Torsion springs 59 are arranged around'these pins 51 and inserted between said attachments and the eyes of the legs. The springs 59 serve to keep the legs directed obliquely outward when not engaging the handles 5| and 52 so as to make it possible to remove the cover from or place it on the dust container without any interference from the handles 5| or 52. The lever 55, which is connected to the straight middle portion of the clip, is provided in a manner known per se with a roller at its end portion bearing against said handle.

The vacuum cleaner is provided with a switch combined with a starting resistance, the resistance having for its object to reduce the surge of current during starting. The construction is such that the resistance is switched in on starting but, as soon as the manually applied force is relieved, the resistance is automatically shunted. The entire starting device, including the starting resistance and switches, is placed in the pressure chamber 22 in such manner that it is cooled by the blowing air. illustrated by the Figs. 4-7 consists of two switches 5| and 52 and the above-mentioned resistance designated by 53. The switches are These The device which is clearly" 2,872,944 rigidly connected to an insulating piece 64 through which the levers 65 and 66 of the switches pass. This insulating piece 64 is tightly connected to the cover I and also forms the bottom of a casing 67 surrounding the connecting contacts 68 of the apparatus. Slidably mounted between the casing 61 and the insulating piece 65 are the hand-operated switch members, namely bars 69 and 10, by means of which the switches are thrown. Said bars which are suitably made of insulating material are slidable in the walls 61 of the casing. As appears from the wiring diagram of Fig. '7, the double pole switch 62 is connected in the leads of motor 24. The resistance $3 is connected in series in one of the leads and the switch 6! is connected to shunt the resistance. In order to return the bar 69 to its initial position after its action, a pressure spring I! is inserted between a tongue 11 connected to said spring and the casing 61. Moreover, said bars are provided with projections 18 and 19 so that the bar 69, when in operation, entrains the bar in.

In Figs. 4-7'all parts are shown in the breaking position. The starting device described functions in the following manner: When the apparatus is to be started, the bar 69 is pressed inwardly, thus compressing the spring 16, the

switch (ii is opened and the resistance 63 is connected in. Immediately afterwards the 2-pole' switch 62 is closed by the bar 10 being entrained by the bar 69. The circuit then consists of the switch 62. the motor 24 and the resistance 63 via the conduits 15, 14, 13, 12 and H. When the pressure on the bar 69 is relieved, the latter is brought back to its initial position by the spring 16, the switch 6| being closed and the resistance 83 shunted in the circuit. The driving motor of the apparatus is stopped by the bar 10 being actuated in the opposite direction, in which case the switch 62 is opened. As appears from Fig. 6, a clearance 80 is provided between the projections I8 and 19 of the bars 69 and 10, this having for its object to ensure in all conditions that the switch 6| will always be actuated before the switch 62.

What I claim is:

i. In a vacuum cleaner, an elongated casing open at the top and forming a dust receptacle, means forming an air and dust inlet at one end of said casing, a closure for said casing, said closure including an outer top wall and an under wall, said under wall being formed with an opening adjacent said inlet, a dust separating member disposed across said opening, a hollow air tight member depending in air tight relationship from said under wall into said casing, said hollow member being located at the side of said dust separating member opposite from said inlet, a.

motor fan unit in said hollow member, means including a hand grasp element extending through said outer top wall for shaking said dust separating member. a cover member movably secured to said top wall for covering said element, and means providing an air-tight seal between said cover member and said top wall when the former is closed, the space inside said cover member being in communication with the space between said top wall and under wall.

2. In a vacuum cleaner, an elongated casing open at the top and forming a dust receptacle, means forming an air and dust inlet at one end of said casing, a removable closure for said casing, said closure including an outer top wall and an under wall, said under wall being fornied with an opening adjacent said inlet, a dust separating member disposed across said opening, a hollow air tight member depending in air tight relationship from said under wall into said casing, said hollow. member being located at the side of said dust separating member opposite from said inlet. a motor fan unit in said hollow member, and supporting means depending from said under wall in spaced relation to said hollow member and serving, together with said hollow member, to support said closure in an unright position when the latter is removed from said casing.

3. In a vacuum cleaner, a casing having an inlet, a fan for producing flow of air through said inlet, a filter in said casing in the path of air flow between said inlet and said fan, a member for shaking said filter, said casing being formed with a ort communicating with the path of air fiow between said filter and said fan, and means including a valve for closing said port and. rendering said member inoperable to shake said filter, said means being manually operable for rendering said member operable to shake said filter and for opening said port to bypass said filter by providing for direct flow of ai through said port to said fan.v

4. In a vacuum cleaner, a casing havingan inlet, a fan for producing flowof air through said inlet, a, filter in said casing in the path of air flow between said inlet and said fan, a manually operable member extending exteriorly of said casing for shaking said filter, said casing being formed with a port communicating with i the path or air flow between said filter and said fan, and a movable closure for closingsaid port and covering said member to render the latter inaccessible for manual operation, said closure being manually movable for rendering said member accessible and for opening said port to ,by-pass said filter by providing for direct n w of air through said port to said fan. V

5. In a vacuum cleaner, a casing having an inlet and an outlet, a filter in saidcasing between said inlet and said outlet, a fan for producing flow or air through said casing, a member for shaking said filter, and means including a valve shiftable between 'a position interrupting flow of air through said filter and rendering said member operable to shake said filter and a position permitting such flow and rendering said member inoperable to shake said filter- 'AXEL ALBERT FORSBEBG. 

